15 Decadent Desserts for Valentine's Day at Home

chocolate and amaretto torte — Elaine Lemm

Want to cook up something impressive for Valentine's Day? Treat your Valentines to a delicious homemade dessert made with love! Whether you're a beginning baker or want to show off your flair with a torch, we've rounded up decadent treats and glamorous desserts for every skill level. Browse our top Valentine's Day dessert recipes from easy, one-bowl chocolate cakes to the cutest conversation heart cookies, lemony creme brulee, and festive treats flavored with champagne, fruits, and rose petals.

20 Valentine's Day Dinner Ideas

01 of 15

Heart-Shaped Valentine's Day Cake

The Spruce/Kristina Vanni

Even beginner bakers can pull off this adorable, heart-shaped Valentine's Day cake that starts with a boxed cake mix. It's a snap to assemble sliced round cake layers into the shape of a heart with the easy instructions. Frost your homemade cake with a billowy, pink-tinted topping made from convenient, packaged ingredients, and decorate with candies or sprinkles.
02 of 15

Chocolate Mousse

The Spruce / Cara Cormack

Fluffy, decadent chocolate mousse is the quintessential romantic French dessert, and an essential recipe for chocoholics to know. It is an ideal treat to offer at the end of a special meal because it can be made ahead and kept in the fridge until you need it. Whip up a creamy batch in only 10 minutes, allowing several hours of chilling time to set.
03 of 15

Champagne Cupcakes

The Spruce/Kristina Vanni

If your Valentine's Day plans include popping the cork on a bottle of champagne, why not reserve some of that bubbly goodness to create a special dessert? Light and airy champagne cupcakes topped with a luscious, champagne-infused vanilla frosting are a wonderful treat for all manner of special occasion, from Valentine's Day to New Year's Eve, wedding showers, and Mother's Day brunch.
04 of 15

Bananas Foster

The Spruce/Kristina Vanni

Bananas Foster is a delectable dessert and an after-dinner show all in one. The showstopping, flambeed dessert from New Orleans is made by sauteeing bananas in a cinnamon-scented butter and brown sugar sauce. Banana liqueur and rum are then added to the pan, and ignited with a flame, to produce a dramatic effect, and caramelize the fruit. Serve topped the traditional way with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, for a memorable Valentine's dessert.

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05 of 15

Sugar Cookie Bars

The Spruce Eats / Cara Cormack

This is the cookie that's here for you whenever you need it, no chilling time, rolling, shaping, or special equipment required. It's your go-to recipe for every occasion or craving. These sugar cookie bars are a cross between your basic, cut sugar cookie with crispy edges, and a softer lofthouse cookie, which has a cakier interior.
06 of 15

Cookie Butter Truffles

The Spruce / Bahareh Niati

Cookie butter is all the rage these days, and what better way to enjoy this trendy ingredient than mixing it with chocolate? Sweet, slightly spiced cookie butter is mixed with semi-sweet chocolate to form a rich, luscious ganache filling. We like to stir some crushed cookies into the ganache to give it a little crunch and enhance the cookie flavor.
07 of 15

Malabi Rose Water Milk Pudding

The Spruce/Ahlam Raffii

Rose water pudding is a must-try for all romantics who have a sweet tooth. This iconic, Middle Eastern chilled dessert is silky and light, with a delicately flower-scented custard. Topped with a heavenly raspberry-rose syrup, and sprinkled with chopped pistachios, it is a true taste for the taste buds, and the perfect dessert for February 14th.
08 of 15

Conversation Heart Sugar Cookies

The Spruce/Elizabeth LaBau

Bursting with love? Express your sweetest feelings with cookies this Valentine's Day. It's so easy to bake up a batch of buttery, large sugar cookies, and glaze them with colorful royal icing to look just like oversized conversation hearts. Get creative in coming up with customized messages for your cookies, which are great for gifting to adults and kids alike.

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09 of 15

Cream Cheese Brownies

The Spruce / Cara Cormack

There's a special place in our hearts reserved for cream cheese brownies. It's the ultimate mash-up of decadent chocolate and tangy cheesecake topping swirled throughout to deliver the optimal bite. Even more, this show-stopping dessert dresses to impress, but requires little extra effort or time.
10 of 15

Flourless Chocolate and Amaretto Torte

The Spruce/Elaine Lemm

Dense, dark, and decadent, flourless chocolate cake checks all the boxes for every palate. It needs only 7 ingredients and offers pure, chocolate goodness with a subtle hint of amaretto in every forkful. This gluten-free cake is rich enough on its own, but even better topped with raspberries, raspberry sauce, and whipped cream.
11 of 15

Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

The Spruce/Elaine Lemm

There's nothing quite so romantic as a fresh, juicy berry dipped in rich, melted chocolate. You need only 10 minutes, and 3 ingredients, to pull together an elegant platter of chocolate-covered strawberries to share with that special someone on V-Day. Use a good-quality semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, and allow 30 minutes of chilling time between dipping and serving.
12 of 15

Cardamom Salted Caramel Pears

The Spruce/Anita Schecter

Juicy, fresh pears dipped in sticky-sweet salted caramel are a wondrous dessert that looks absolutely stunning on the table. Think of them as a fancy-schmancy take on caramel apples for grown-ups. Prepare these perfectly spiced and sauced fruit treats in 30 minutes, to wrap up your festive dinner.

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13 of 15

Raspberry Nutella Hearts

The Spruce/Leah Maroney

What's better than a box of chocolate-covered raspberries? The answer is these light, yet indulgent puff pastry hearts. Bonus: These sweet little hearts are loaded with everyone's favorite chocolate spread, Nutella! A few raspberries give the pastry a nice tart bite. Plus, they also look super pretty on a smear of Nutella.
14 of 15

Chocolate Eclair Cake

Morgan Baker

This cake has all of the flair and prestige of traditional eclairs, but without all the work, making it the perfect dessert for special occasions. The beauty of this recipe lies in the simplicity. We utilize graham crackers and instant pudding to give you all the nostalgic vibes without the fuss.
15 of 15

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

The Spruce Eats / Bahareh Niati

These soft, fudge-like cookies are perfect for when you can't decide between brownies or cookies. This recipe jam-packs in chocolate by using melted chocolate, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips. They're decadent and delicious and sure to please the chocolate lovers in your life.